Norway to provide a further NOK 50 million in humanitarian assistance to Iraq

‘The situation in Iraq has gone from bad to worse in the last few weeks. There are now more than 1.4 million internally displaced people in the country, and the humanitarian situation is extremely difficult. The Norwegian Government is therefore allocating a further NOK 50 million to help those who have been affected by the conflict in Iraq,’ said Minister of Foreign Affairs Børge Brende.

‘The situation in Iraq has gone from bad to worse in the last few weeks. There are now more than 1.4 million internally displaced people in the country, and the humanitarian situation is extremely difficult. The Norwegian Government is therefore allocating a further NOK 50 million to help those who have been affected by the conflict in Iraq,’ said Minister of Foreign Affairs Børge Brende.

The extra funding was announced when the Foreign Minister visited Iraq this Monday and Tuesday. With this allocation, Norway has given a total of NOK 175 million in humanitarian assistance to Iraq this year.

Mr Brende’s programme in Baghdad included meetings with Haider al-Abadi, Prime Minister-designate, who is in the process of forming a new government. In Erbil, Mr Brende met representatives of the Kurdish regional authorities, the UN and humanitarian organisations, and visited internally displaced people in the area.

‘It is vital for Iraq’s future that all groups in Iraq are represented in the new government. I emphasised this in my talks with the Prime Minister-designate. It is also crucially important for the new government to unite the country in the fight against the ISIL extremists. ISIL is responsible for serious breaches of human rights – atrocious acts that should be met with unanimous condemnation,’ said Mr Brende.